Heroes Ball: "...and a Good Time Was Had by All"

As May is upon us, it is the time of year when the state budget picture begins to clear as state legislators put the finishing touches on the budget for the fiscal year beginning on July 1. This year, however, that picture is still very blurry due to uncertainty about the federal budget being written in Washington, D.C. Now, you may wonder what the federal budget has to do with the state’s budget. The fact is that a good portion of the state’s dollars to spend come back to Oklahoma from our federal tax dollars we send to Washington. Last year, the U.S. Census reported that Oklahoma’s state government received 43% of its 2022 revenue from federal dollars. Oklahoma generally gets more money as a percentage of its budget than most states. Recently, with recent federal allocations under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the total actually approached two-thirds of state spending being federal funds. ARPA expenditures were mainly one-time use projects. This has allowed state lawmakers to keep Oklahoma’s tax rates, already some of the lowest in the nation, even lower while still providing the services Oklahomans need and expect from state government. All that may be about to change. President Trump’s budget proposal, and those working their way through Congress, would sharply cut federal government spending, including that which goes to the states. In a number of cases, congressional leaders in Washington want the states to pick up more of the tab, especially in regard to Medicaid, the federal and state-funded health coverage program for the poor. In 2020, Oklahomans voted to expand Medicaid to adults aged 19-64 who earn at or below 138% of the federal poverty level. This expansion was placed in Oklahoma’s Constitution. It is not optional for state legislators: they must abide by the state constitution. If Washington reduces the amount of money allocated to the states for Medicaid, Oklahoma state lawmakers have no choice but to move money from other functions to meet the constitutional requirement for Medicaid coverage. To put how important Medicaid is to Oklahoma families and children, more than a million Oklahomans are on Medicaid – a quarter of the state’s entire population, and more than half of Oklahoma Medicaid recipients are children. Federal cuts to Medicaid will hit Oklahoma kids the hardest because there is no state constitutional requirement that Medicaid for kids be covered. So, what kind of cut is looming, just in Medicaid? The U.S. House of Representatives proposal could mean as much as $800 billion cut from Medicaid. The U.S. Senate proposal is not quite so draconian, but we can likely expect a Medicaid cut, which will hit children more severely. Medicaid is not the only child-focused federal program on the chopping block. In 2023, more than half of all federal spending on children (57 percent) went toward Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Head Start, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, the Child Tax Credit, and the Earned Income Tax Credit – all facing cuts under current federal budget proposals. Cuts to childcare and Head Start would mean families would have to pay more for childcare when parents work, cutting into family incomes. State lawmakers already have less state money to spend this year than last, even without federal cuts or a proposed state income tax cut being championed by the governor. Our state legislators have an enormous task ahead of them. Now is the time to reach out to federal lawmakers and make sure they know Oklahoma’s children need to be as protected as possible from the budget storms coming from our Nation’s Capital. To get the contact information for Oklahoma’s federal congressional delegation, go to https://tinyurl.com/OKFedLeg

The 2025 Oklahoma legislative session is almost three-fourths of the way done for the year with adjournment occurring in late May, and a good number of positive bills are moving forward. The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) is grateful to those policymakers - individuals from both rural and urban areas, men and women, Democrats and Republicans, new and veteran lawmakers - who filed and advanced legislation improve the lives of children. As you can see, categories do not matter when it comes to good policies. Our Capitol team, along with citizen advocates, continue to promote positive outcomes in the bills remaining in the process. Of those we are tracking, here are just a few of the ideas being considered: • Senate Bill 139 and House Bill 1276 - Requires schools to develop policies to prohibit students from the use of cell phones and smartwatches during the school day and when present on school property. • Senate Bill 806 - Food is Medicine Initiative. Directs Oklahoma Health Care Authority to implement a financial incentive for contracted entities who improve health outcomes of covered members through nutrition services. • House Bill 1484 – “Rain's Law.” Requires student instruction on fentanyl use/abuse in schools. • House Bill 1574 - Requires The Office of Juvenile System Oversight at the direction of Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth to inspect state-operated child facilities and inspect private operated child facilities on a periodic basis or as needed. • House Bill 1848 - Grants a tax credit to employers that provides a childcare subsidy to their employees or operates a childcare facility for their employees. • House Bill 2013 - Creates “Dylan's Law,” which provides that all individual and group health insurance policies that provide medical and surgical benefits must provide the same coverage and benefits to any individual who has been diagnosed with epilepsy as they would to an individual that has not been diagnosed with epilepsy. • House Bill 2030 - Increases foster care maintenance payment for resources parents to be at least $22.72 per day or $681.60 per month (a $5/day increase). • House Bill 2361 – “Successful Adulthood Act.” Provides children 16 years or older who have been released from custody due to the entry of an adoption decree or guardianship order will be eligible to receive successful adulthood services until they are 21. • House Bill 2892 – Directs that the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth may pursue an investigation into a case where there exists reasonable belief in injurious conduct, neglect, physical or sexual abuse of a child has occurred. That is a strong list; still, there are some ideas which will not move forward this year. One of those is placing barriers on the use of social media by those youngest of Oklahomans in their pre-teen years. Two bills were proposed - HB 1275 and SB 885 - but legislative leaders decided to pause advancement due to questions about constitutionality. There is a similar concept being considered by federal officials that may advance, and OICA encourages that debate and passage. House Bill 1082 would have created a legal presumption that joint custody and equally shared parenting time is in the best interest of the child. The presumption could have been rebutted by a preponderance of evidence. This bill was held by the Senate Judiciary Committee to further study the language and remove any conflicting language currently in statute. Over the summer, we will work to address the concerns with these concepts. In the meantime, we will advocate for advancing those remaining ideas left alive for this session. If you would like weekly updates on these and other bills, go to oica.org to sign up for our Thursday email newsletter.

Do you consider your world view as “black & white” versus “shades of gray?” For my entire life, I can only remember a few times in my younger days that I felt so strongly about one side of an issue that it clouded me from seeing the other side of the story. In fact, the few times I took a hard line on something, I came around to see other perspectives and understood that someone somewhere would be hurt by not considering all sides of an issue. I had the pleasure of attending “The Boys from Oklahoma” concert this past weekend in Stillwater. While there, I made some new friends who recognized me from my former service as a state representative. We had an enjoyable conversation that sparked writing this column. After the introductions and pleasantries, light conversation about politics came up and two of them, lifelong best friends, shared their distinct political differences. What struck me was that this seems like a rarity these days as differing opinions have often divided up friends and family. I was happy to see that their friendship was strong enough to hold up against something like differing in their preferred political views. Policymakers have that challenge, and many enter the fray feeling they need to have enemies to validate what they wish to achieve. The natural opponent in politics is a person who is a challenger in an election, be it in a party primary between those who belong to the same party or those in the other party should one make it to the General Election. Only one wins the election, potentially leading to a grudge against the partisan opposition that can follow into political service. That is understandable as political parties often are the dividing line between views on multiple issues and can result in differing votes on issues. These differences often can become personal to policymakers who might champion an issue or stand devoutly against something. Fortunately, there are incidents that serve as a reality check for many that there are things far more important than political divides. One of those moments during this session was the passage of House Bill 1389, authored by Rep. Melissa Provenzano, D-Tulsa and Sen. Brenda Stanley, R-Midwest City. This bill would guarantee coverage for low-dose mammography screenings for Oklahoma women to help detect breast cancer. Provenzano, about two months ago, underwent a mastectomy for stage one HER2-positive breast cancer. “4,287 women were diagnosed [with breast cancer] this last year in the State of Oklahoma,” said Provenzano in her debate. “If this bill can help save a mom, I hope you’ll consider voting for it.” The bill did pass, and it was unanimous with a 95-0 vote. One of her colleagues, Majority Floor Leader Rep. Josh West, R-Grove, summed it up best. “Representative Provenzano, regardless of party lines, I guarantee it, I can speak for everyone, saying we all care about you,” West said. I appreciate that sentiment more than I can convey in this column. I am fortunate to work in a field (child advocacy) that often does not divide on party lines, albeit the pathway to solutions can have differing opinions. I have found it easy to visit with almost every lawmaker about most issues and am thankful when they think through the issues and what impact they will have on children, and with this bill, saving the lives of mothers. Thank you to those who place good policy over party on both sides of the aisle when it comes to legislative solutions. And if you have lost a good friend over political differences, please consider a second chance.

When it comes to ideas emanating from the State Capitol, there is no perfect solution to problems faced by what a bill might address. Such is the case with Senate Bill 105. The bill would modify the requirements for qualification for students with the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship to transfer between school districts. The bill removes the requirement for a student to have attended a public school while on an IEP in the year immediately prior to applying for the scholarship. It also removes the word “disability” and replaces it with the phrase “special need.” The bill also would remove language stating that acceptance of a scholarship has the same effect as parental revocation of consent to services under certain provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This update brings the statute in line with federal guidelines. Due to the Legislature passing language that was signed into law in past years which allows almost all students the ability to transfer to new schools, this legislation cleans up a loophole that impacts those students who fall into the special needs category and allows the additional weighted formula funds, funds designated under the Lindsey Nicole Henry (LNH) Scholarship, to follow the student to the new district or school. This would ensure resources are there to help the child with support for their circumstance which allows them to qualify for this funding. I was a lawmaker when the LNH Scholarship was originally brought to the Legislature more than a decade ago. I voted against the original language due to fear of this creating a voucher system that would allow students to transfer to another district for reasons other than to seek better support services. After working with many families who have faced issues with not receiving the best services possible in their home district, I now realize how important this policy is for families to be able to seek out different educational options for their children. This is not about comparing one district or school to another. This is about the unique needs of individual students and families and recognizing that sometimes families can find the services for their students at different schools who may already have particular specialists hired, and specialize in serving students with those needs. Over the past several years, Oklahoma law has become very flexible for student transfer, even providing up to a $7,500 voucher of state dollars to subsidize students to enroll in a private school depending upon their family’s income, or $1,000 for parents who home school their children. Unfortunately, several private schools raised their tuition by the amount of the voucher, intentionally keeping the price out of reach for the families who the voucher was most designed to assist. Additionally, agency rules were established which required the payment to be sent directly to the school, allowing the administration to determine the income of the families based upon the level of the payment, a horrible invasion of privacy on these families that I hope will be rectified. As I pointed out, there are no perfect answers to many of these issues brought forth through legislation, but we must hope they can do the best for those impacted. Such is the case with special needs children who would benefit from Senate Bill 105, and let’s hope policymakers will address the issues with how vouchers might legitimately support children who deserve better opportunities.

Beyond the positive legislation that survived the Legislature’s deadline last week, many with overwhelming support, there was a tremendous financial gift given to Oklahoma. This support will undoubtedly provide a positive impact for children in need of hope. I had the pleasure of being invited to the announcement of a $10 million matching initiative provided by Arnold Ventures over the next four years for Oklahoma youth programs. The partnership will initially focus on community-driven programs that have a demonstrated record of unlocking students’ potential. “This partnership highlights our commitment to world-class education, workforce readiness, and ensuring every young Oklahoman has the tools they need to achieve their full potential and thrive,” proclaimed Gov. Kevin Stitt. Laura and John Arnold, the founders and co-chairs of Arnold Ventures, were present at the announcement where more than 100 Oklahomans gathered to hear the news. “With policymakers facing increasingly complex problems and the need to balance budgets, it’s crucial to support strategies with the greatest potential to drive real, measurable outcomes for children, families, and communities,” said Laura Arnold. “We look forward to working with Governor Stitt and his team in Oklahoma on this significant partnership.” I had the opportunity to personally visit with the Arnolds following the announcement. Their excitement about the opportunity to do good in our state was obvious, and I certainly appreciate what their donation will do for many areas of the work that the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) supports through our collaborative partners. Potential initiatives which would bolster areas of need that were included in the release, though certainly not limited to these, are: • Saga Tutoring – This proven educational intervention provides intensive math tutoring services to 9th and 10th graders in low-income high schools. Large, well-conducted randomized controlled trials found that Saga produced a sustained increase in students’ math achievement. • Wendy’s Wonderful Kids – This program recruits adoptive families for children in foster care or other out-of-home placements. A large, well-conducted randomized controlled trial found Wendy’s Wonderful Kids increased adoption rates by more than one-third over a period of several years. Both of these policy areas are points where Oklahoma has been struggling. There is legislation going through this session which could also provide improvements. House Bill 2030, authored by Rep. Nick Archer, R-Elk City and Sen. Kristen Thompson, R-Oklahoma City, would increase foster care rates to help care for those youth. There is also Senate Bill 215 by Sen. Ally Seifried, R-Claremore, and Speaker Pro Tempore Anthony Moore, R- Clinton, which would create the Oklahoma Math Achievement and Proficiency Act, a directive to screen students in grade school and provide interventions to help those who are struggling. Thank you again to the Arnolds for this generous support for Oklahoma’s youth. If you have a program you feel might qualify and benefit from financial assistance through these matching funds, which includes public school districts, contact Brian Bobek of DHS at Brian.Bobek@gov.ok.gov for more information. Such investments with private dollars are increasingly vital for providing services to assist in areas of need. I also want to thank all those many Oklahoma family foundations and philanthropists that provide generous support for improving the quality of life for Oklahomans. OICA certainly benefits from those foundations who support our mission. If you are in a position in life where you would like to see a mission supported beyond your own time of life, consider reaching out to one of the several foundation management organizations in Oklahoma to establish your own private family foundation with an endowment. This will ensure the work of charitable organizations that you cherish may continue to do good well into the future.

As we approach the end of March, this week marks the second major in-session deadline for legislation at the Oklahoma Legislature. At the end of this week, all bills up for consideration in the house of origin must either pass and be sent to the opposite body or be held over for discussion next year. This deadline eliminates a significant portion of the ideas filed by lawmakers, but there is still the possibility that a concept could be amended into another bill. This requires a daily monitoring of filed amendments. So, for those of you who are worried about some topic, nothing is ever truly “dead” in the Legislature until they adjourn for the final time at the end of May. The budget is still a source of concern as lawmakers have less money this year to pay for the services Oklahomans need and expect than they did last year. This is primarily because of the ending of the state’s portion of the grocery sales tax and other economic factors, such as federal matching dollars facing reduction. Governor Stitt would still like to see a complete elimination of state income taxes, but it is not clear what revenue streams would be increased to balance the budget cuts, or if he would put forward a decrease in state services in his final two years. That would be up to the Legislature to determine ultimately. Back on the state budget, lawmakers are considering many ideas which could cost additional revenue, so they must cautiously proceed. One way they balance the policy work with the budget at these early stages is through a procedural process called “striking the title” or “striking the enacting clause” on a bill that costs money. The Oklahoma Constitution spells out that every piece of legislation enacted by the Legislature must have a title, which is the summary of the content at the very beginning of a bill, and an enacting clause, which is a line in every bill that says, “Be it enacted by the people of the state of Oklahoma.” When lawmakers present a motion to strike one or the other, and it is adopted, that bill will have to be considered again before it could be sent to the governor. This allows lawmakers to calculate the total cost for all the bills considered during the current legislative session. Understanding the language in bills can be difficult for those who have not worked regularly in the process. A program that I belonged to in my college days, the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature, prepared a bill-writing guide for students who participated in the mock legislature and who wanted to write ideas in the form of legislation for consideration at their conference. I took this guide and modified it to reflect the state legislative process, so I hope this will help you understand each of the different things that you will find in legislation better. You can find the guide at https://tinyurl.com/OkLegHandbook on the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) website under “Advocacy Resources.” This section also includes other resources which should help prepare you better for engaging in the legislative process. I finish this week by sharing sad news of the passing of two former state senators who had an impact on my life. Marvin York, who served in both the House and the Senate from south Oklahoma City, was the Senate President Pro Tempore from 1981-1985. Billie Floyd, who represented Ada, served one term in the state Senate. Both were strong advocates, especially for equality, and they accomplished much during their time in office. OICA extends our deepest condolences to their families. 

Oklahoma received good news last week: the long-running Pinnacle Plan, a settlement agreement for the class action lawsuit filed against the Department of Human Services, was finalized. On May 5, 2009, plaintiff children sued state officials alleging policies and procedures adopted by the state subjected foster children to significant, ongoing harm and risk of harm, deprivation of the chance for safe and stable childhoods, and violation of their constitutional and statutory rights. It was found by the courts in the class action lawsuit that “From FFY 2002 to FFY 2008, DHS's (Department of Human Services) reported abuse-in-care rate was among the five highest reporting jurisdictions in the country. For every year from federal fiscal year ("FFY") 2002 through FFY 2010, DHS's abuse in-care rate has been 1.54 to 3.97 times greater than the federal standard.” A March 2011 DHS report showed that more than 5,300 children in out-of-home care (68% of the total number of such children) had a primary caseworker whose caseload was greater than 20 children; more than 3,000 children had a primary worker whose caseload was greater than 25 children; and more than 1,200 children had a primary caseworker whose caseload was more than 30 children. On December 11, 2011, the court granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment on the plaintiffs’ claims for violation of liberty and privacy rights and violation of their procedural due process rights. The Commission for Human Services met on Jan. 4, 2012, and approved changes made by the Contingency Review Board (CRB) to a settlement agreement, which was first approved on Dec. 20, 2011, by the Commission and Children's Rights, a child advocacy group representing children in the state's foster care system in the lawsuit. As part of this settlement agreement, DHS developed an improvement plan, called the Oklahoma Pinnacle Plan, which guided the agency as it worked to make improvements in the way it cares for children in foster care. As part of the settlement agreement, three out-of-state child welfare experts were named to oversee the development of the child welfare improvement plan and its implementation. Both DHS and Children's Rights participated in the selection of the panel members. The panel monitored the state's compliance with the proposed improvements. Much thanks go to the individuals who worked so hard on this, including Dr. Deb Shropshire who oversaw Child Welfare Services at the time, and the DHS Directors who oversaw this effort. We also cannot forget the countless workers who have helped improve the way in which children receive support. Thanks also go to the lawmakers who were heavily involved then and now to ensure the Pinnacle Plan did not see setbacks, and Gov. Mary Fallin and Gov. Kevin Stitt for demanding that OKDHS budgets not be slashed during tough economic times, which would have certainly delayed this conclusion. While the plan’s finalization is certainly good news, many of these same circumstances remain as problems. Caseworker loads have improved, but there is still much put upon these individuals to oversee cases throughout the state. Lawmakers should enhance funds to reduce loads and improve preventative resources, so children do not enter the system in the first place. Rep. Nick Archer, R-Elk City, has written legislation this session to increase traditional foster care daily rates from $17.72 to $22.72, a much-needed bump to address the decline in numbers of families willing to foster and bear increased familial costs. More families are desperately needed to help take in these children. While we have much good to celebrate, we also must remain steadfast that things do not take a backslide. The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) will remain persistent in promoting further positive improvements with our state’s child welfare system. 

Joe Dorman, CEO of the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) responded to a news release announcing that Oklahoma Human Services has been released from the Pinnacle Plan and is no long subject to the oversight of child welfare monitors. “We at the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy welcome this news and applaud the improvement made at Oklahoma Human Services through the years under the Pinnacle Plan court order,” Dorman said. “And personally, as a lawmaker who supported the series of legislation which implemented the standards which DHS had to follow under this plan, I am extremely happy to see this come to successful culmination.” “OICA was created to be an outside watchdog on state government in matters relating to child well-being due to an earlier court case, the Terry D. Lawsuit. We look forward to working with Oklahoma Human Services to assist with their promise to ‘continue working with community partners, legislators, and other stakeholders to maintain transparency and ensure Oklahoma families have the resources they need for lifelong success,” said Dorman. “We never want to return to a place where another such action is needed to protect children placed in these systems. We remind officials that although progress has been made, we have a long way to go before we end the trauma experienced by Oklahoma's children. We encourage lawmakers to continue to invest in education, healthcare, and family support programs that stabilize Oklahoma's fragile families.” 

I want to extend my condolences to those families who were impacted by severe storms this past week. From reports that were aired, it sounds like many Oklahomans were lucky to get away with only property damage as two Mississippians were killed by a tornado. You simply do not know when the next damaging or fatal tornado will strike and where. Our state consistently ranks in the top three for areas impacted by the variety of storms, fires, and other catastrophes. Thankfully, the National Weather Service based in Norman provides location-based notifications about extreme weather events that are transmitted directly to your phone using a Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA). These alerts are issued by government authorities, including state and local safety agencies, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the Department of Homeland Security. The service does not track individuals by their billing address; rather, these are notifications sent by cell towers to mobile devices in the affected area. Every phone capable of receiving WEA notifications should receive them if you have cell coverage and alerts are allowed in your settings. To be safe, you should check your phone’s settings to ensure that it can receive alerts. For iPhones: -Tap “Settings" and then “Notifications." -Scroll to “Government Alerts” at the bottom of the screen. -Check that “Emergency Alerts" and “Public Safety Alerts" are turned on. The green circle indicates the alerts are on and enabled.  The instructions may vary on Android phones, but here is the standard: -In "Settings," find "Apps and Notifications." -Tap "Notifications." -Next, turn on "Allow alerts." -Make sure each of the alert types are enabled. While enabled, a loud tone will alert you whenever you receive a WEA. It is best to consult your phone carrier to ensure that you have your system set up properly. I own a battery-operated NOAA Weather Radio with a warning alarm for my home, preparedness I learned from my father. This makes an excellent back-up for home for the hours when one is asleep. These are often very affordable and can easily be set to your home location. Many municipalities do not provide storm shelters established for public use, so it is best to check with your local city hall to see if your community has one. Occasionally, county governments will offer grant assistance for home shelters, so watch for this support. Several rural schools have included the minimal extra cost to build shelter space for students and school employees for storms which hit during the daytime hours. Often, they will open these spaces to the community at night, but note the rules, such as most not allowing pets. Visit with your local school board to ensure that addition is included in future construction. I also want to share how FEMA reimbursements often work. When a disaster hits, FEMA will review the damage to public spaces, including cities, counties, electric cooperatives, and tribal facilities. The reimbursement rate is as follows: 75% coverage from the federal government, 12.5% covered by the state, and 12.5% paid for by the entity receiving damage. Individuals are rarely covered by property damage as that is up to private insurance. Following natural disasters, many young people face severe trauma, both physical and mental. I have heard stories of multiple surgeries required to heal people, often leaving families near bankruptcy. There also does not appear to be any structured support network to help with long-term mental trauma following disasters. I would encourage lawmakers and state agency leaders to explore assistance for such support services. This up-front care will provide work stability and decrease health issues long term. Further information for preparedness can be found at the Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management website at https://oklahoma.gov/oem.html and through your county emergency managers.